A continuation of Barbara's adventures in 'Beyond Burnside', now taking place entirely in Burnside. Looks like it's back to basics.
Hope Larson really has a breezy writing style, and her characters and stories are eccentric yet human enough to get you invested in what is going on with them, even if the content is fairly predictable and not as dark or deep as you'd expect from a comic involving a member of the Bat family. It's just plain fun. I love the change in artists, too - this volume is a vast improvement on the art in the previous volume. It's colourful, cute and nice to look at, without so many distracting lines and off-putting character facial expressions.
I think simple and fun are what I would best describe 'Son of Penguin', not that it doesn't make you think. Barbara is fantastic as ever, and it provides a lot of social commentary and insight into our current technological age. It's surprisingly up to date.
But it goes too far sometimes. The extremes of "social media is turning us all into mindless, corporate slaves who won't think for themselves" gave me flashbacks to Batgirl's first stories at Burnside - not a good sign. I will give 'Son of Penguin' credit for not feeling as gimmicky, though. But I mean, this is the second 'Batgirl' comic I've read in a row where a villain's plot involves mass mind control using social media. We get it, okay? It's getting stale at this point. I know computers and hacking are Babs' forte, but give her something new to fight against. At least give her more interesting, complex villains instead of disposable one-offs.
Yeah, Barbara dates the Penguin's son, and guess what? He does turn out to be evil. Go figure.
Babs' extremely unlucky love life has existed pretty much since her inception, and I'm sure at this point DC is aware that it is a running gag, intentional or not. All her love interests seem to turn out to be evil or suspicious or both.
With that said, Dick Grayson makes a cameo in this comic, which is lovely (and hunky). He is presented as a breather moment for Barbara in wanting an old friend to talk to and hang out with. Not that any of this bothers her much, since men are not her priority; not like her degree, her superhero-ing, and her female roommates, old and new. Larson brings back some of the best parts of Gail Simone's New 52 'Batgirl' run, whilst moving forward with her own creative ideas for the character's growth.
Barbara is majoring in Library Sciences now; a great callback to her days in the sixties as a librarian, and as someone who loves libraries this is endearing to me. There is a direct continuity nod from the previous comic in how she focuses on and switches off her eidetic memory via meditation, in order to relax and think outside of the box in a certain dire situation.
Alysia Yeoh is back! It's like she never left! Providing queer POC trans representation - her story is about the discussion of insemination for her female partner and what it would mean to be starting a family with her. Misgendering is briefly touched on; something I wish could have been delved into further. The final issue of 'Son of Penguin' is all about Barbara and Alysia's friendship. It is a celebration of female friendships and they are wonderful together, calling each other "babe" and everything (Alysia also calls Babs "GBG" - another great example of continuity from Simone's run!). Since they're so close, however, I can't quite understand why Babs doesn't just tell Alysia she's Batgirl, when Frankie Charles knows. It's not like she'll be in any more danger than she would be regardless. She's savvy, can take care of herself, and she can clearly be trusted with the secret.
Speaking of Frankie, she is also a woman of colour with female partner issues, and her muscular dystrophy is not forgotten about. Nobody is a token. Nobody is a minority.
So the feminism and diversity is awesome to see in a modern DC comic, given genuine care by Larson and other women writers.
'Batgirl, Volume 2: Son of Penguin' - includes a bonus Batgirl and Supergirl issue to add to the female friendship theme, although the story is unfinished. Among the general, breezy lightheartedness, there is self-referential humour: such as a one-time villain making fun of Batgirl's new costume, specifically her yellow boots, which are sure to stand the test of time!
Whatever its flaws, I love Barbara Gordon and always will. An inspirational, incredibly brainy, career-driven, well-traveled, experienced young woman, who lets us know we are not alone. Whatever her own problems, she is here for us. She's so friendly, and written so complexly, that she manages to avoid the White Saviour stamp. Expertly.
Final Score: 3.5/5
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